The People's Liberation Army Navy was interested in a large destroyer from at least the late-1960s. A development program, code-named "055", initiated in 1976 was cancelled in 1983 after encountering insurmountable technical obstacles from industrial underdevelopment; for example, the required gas turbine power plants could neither be produced domestically, nor imported at acceptable prices. In April 2014, an image emerged of a full-scale mock-up of the Type 055 superstructure - with enclosed integrated mast for radar and other electronics - at the Chinese naval electronic testing range in Wuhan. Nanchang, the first ship of the class, began construction in 2014 at the Jiangnan Shipyard in Shanghai, and was commissioned on 12 January 2020. Its first public appearance - preceding commissioning - was during the PLAN's 70th anniversary parade on 23 April 2019. When launched, Nanchang was among the largest post-Second World War warships launched in East Asia.
Design
Stealth
The Type 055 adopts a conventional flared hull with distinctive stealthy features including an enclosed bulbous bow that hides mooring points, anchor chains and other equipment. The bow and main deckhouse are configured similarly to previous Type 052C/D destroyers. A continuous structure amidship increases internal volume and reduces radar cross-section. The smoke stack design reduces both infrared signature and radar cross-section. Chinese sources credit the design as being generally stealthy, with reduced radar, noise, infrared, and electromagnetic radiation signatures.
Power plants
Propulsive power is generated by four 28 MW QC-280 gas turbines in combined gas and gas arrangement. Additional power may be provided by six 5 MW QD-50 gas turbines. The maximum speed is estimated to be 30 knots.
Electronics
Chinese literature suggests that the Type 055 is capable of "facilitat command management of a battlegroup and supporting elements". The command-and-control and battle management systems are likely comparable to contemporary PLAN systems, which reflect over a decade of intensive interest in information integration from the late 2000s. Sensors include four S-band Type 346B active electronically scanned array radars, X-band radar, a bow hull-mounted sonar, and a towed-array sonar. Various electronic warfare support measures, electronic countermeasures, and electro-optic sensors and datalinks are mounted. They are likely more advanced than those deployed on previous ships. A deployment port exists for variable depth and towed array sonar. The large bulbous bow likely contains a bow sonar; the Type 055 may mount a larger bow sonar than previous Chinese surface combatants.
Armament
The primary armament are missiles carried in 112 universal vertical launch cells ; 64 cells forward and 48 cells aft. The same VLS model is used on the Type 052D destroyer, which is believed to be an implementation of the GJB 5860-2006 standard. The longest variant, with 9-metre cells, is likely used. The Type 055 is expected to carry HHQ-9 surface-to-air missiles, YJ-18 anti-ship cruise missiles, CJ-10 land-attack cruise missiles, and missile-launched anti-submarine torpedoes upon entering service. Potentially, the larger cells may also carry anti-ship ballistic missiles.
Future developments
It has been suggested that future variants may be armed with lasers or electromagnetic railguns. Since the current design does not have integrated electric propulsion, installation of integrated electric propulsion will be required for the ship to meet power requirements in the future.
